Volunteers coming together to make sure no one alone on Thanksgiving Day

Rita Woodburn of Port St. Lucie laughs as volunteer Frank Nantista serves up an extra helping of whipped cream during a free Thanksgiving dinner at the St. Andrew Lutheran Church in Port St. Lucie in 2011.

Treasure Coast Newspapers

Cashia Cobb, left, Maria Emerson and Jacob Huber bow their heads during a prayer before the Thanksgiving meal at Our Father's Table Soup Kitchen in 2009. The three were part of a large group of volunteers that helped prepare and serve meals to those that might not otherwise have anywhere to spend the holiday.

Treasure Coast Newspapers

Volunteers receive Thanksgiving meals to be boxed and delivered at the First United Methodist Church in Stuart in 2011.

Treasure Coast Newspapers

No one should be alone on Thanksgiving.

That was why, in 2008, Vero Beach's First Church of God started its annual free Thanksgiving community dinner. It's also one of the reasons other Treasure Coast faith-based organizations are helping to reach the needy, struggling or lonely, especially during this time of year.

"We started because we wanted to help the homeless. Then we realized there are people who might be alone, whose spouses may have recently died, whose kids are out of the house, who have families in other states — they want to celebrate Thanksgiving, too," said Kristy Bailey, a member and administrative assistant at First Church of God.

"My only concern at first was, how are we possibly going to get enough people to take time away from their families to volunteer for this?" she added. "It turns out that was the least of our problems."

In the first years of the church's dinner, Bailey said, the church had to come up with new volunteering opportunities for all the community members who were eager to lend a hand. They served about 500 dinners that year and expect to serve 2,000 this time around.

"There's a warm feeling about Thanksgiving. People want to volunteer, and young families want to teach their children the values of giving. It's a win-win all around," said Judy Kloski, the volunteer coordinator at the nearby Our Savior Lutheran Church in Vero Beach.

The church has been hosting "Home Alone Thanksgiving Dinner" for more than eight years. This year will be a special one for the event.

"This is especially an important time to come together — to be there for one another — because it's after the election, a time when people are so divided," Kloski said. "It's heartwarming. People who may not agree with each other on certain things, they've been calling even since October to come together to volunteer. When you have everything you need — shelter, food, family — you want to give back."

Among the organizations hoping to help is the Treasure Coast Food Bank, which serves Martin, St. Lucie, Indian River and Okeechobee counties. The nonprofit aims to feed 200,000 families in the area, but Food Bank staff said donations are down this year because many regular supporters are redirecting contributions to family and friends hit by Hurricane Sandy.

Treasure Coast Food Bank on Nov. 17 will have refrigerated trucks at several locations collecting uncooked, frozen turkeys, which will be distributed to soup kitchens, pantries and other organizations, including houses of worship, that are feeding the community.

"Thanksgiving is a holiday associated with food and gathering together for a meal," said Krista Garofalo, vice president of public relations for the Food Bank. "We want to preserve that tradition for people who have fallen on hard times, and we should come together to make sure every person on the Treasure Coast has the ability to celebrate the day."